NHS funding settlement
The NHS Confederation has produced an infographic illustrating The reality behind the 2019-24 NHS funding settlement.  The infographic outlines the financial challenge facing the NHS over the next five years.  It warns that commissioners and providers will need to continue to make considerable efficiency savings and also looks at why the NHS deficit has developed, despite considerable efficiency savings delivered by both providers and commissioners.

Child health in England
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health has published Child health in 2030 in England: comparisons with other wealthy countries.  This report uses long-term historical data to project outcomes for children and young people’s health in 2030. The report concludes that whilst England is middle of the pack for some outcomes, on the majority England is likely to fall further behind other wealthy countries over the next decade.

Commissioning for workplace compassion
NHS England has published Towards commissioning for workplace compassion: a support guide.  This document includes evidence-informed guidance and good practice for commissioners and for providers to support them in achieving compassion in the workplace and so create an NHS culture of compassion for all.  NHS England has also produced two infographics providing information on ‘Why caring for the people who care matters’.

Cost effective treatments and initiatives
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has published a Highlight Nine ways research could save the NHS money.  This highlight provides nine treatments and initiatives that are cost effective for the NHS including weight loss surgery, misaligned shoulder fractures, rotavirus vaccine, public health interventions, oxygen levels for acute bronchiolitis in children, routine replacement of intravenous cannulae, behavioural activation, oral surgery in primary care, and uterine polyps.

National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death
NCEPOD has published National Confidential Enquiry Into Patient Outcome and Death: themes and recommendations common to all hospital specialties.  This report examines NCEPOD’s previously published reports that review in-hospital perioperative deaths and quality of medical care.  It looks at the recommendations within a set of chosen themes observed across these reports and brings these together into a set of general recommendations.

Addressing delayed discharges
The NHS Confederation has published Helping to address delayed discharges in South London: the HAWK/SLaM service.  This case study describes a specialist service which brings together housing, clinicians and discharge teams to work with patients whose housing problems are delaying their discharge from hospital.

Integrated Care Providers
The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a consultation Directions for integrated care providers (ICPs).    This consultation set outs the draft directions for those providing primary care as part of an ICP and asks if the draft provisions for a new ICP contract are effective and sufficient, and whether there are other impacts the government should be aware of.

Price increases for generic medicines
The Public Accounts Committee has published Price increases for generic medicines.  Following the prices increase in certain generic medicines during 2017, the committee examines how the system coped.  The report concludes the impact of generic drug price rises highlights the need for clarity now and after the UK’s departure from the EU to ensure patients have access to medicines.

Living with multiple conditions
The Taskforce on Multiple Conditions has published “Just one thing after another”: living with multiple conditions (pdf).  This document shares learning from interviews with the 10 people living with two or more long-term conditions.  It sets out their everyday experiences. perceptions of quality of life and changes they would like.

Advance care planning
Compassion in Dying has published Advanced care planning in general practice – does policy match reality?  This report presents the findings from a Freedom of Information request to CCGs which revealed gaps between national level policies, the efforts of CCGs in relation to advance care planning and the practice that takes place in GP surgeries.

NHS Standard Contract provisions across primary and secondary care
NHS England has published 2017-19 NHS Standard Contract provisions across primary and secondary care: implementation toolkit for local systems.  This document sets out ways in which organisations can collaborate locally to implement the provisions relating to primary and secondary care.  The toolkit includes: practical steps for enabling implementation; case studies; example local primary /secondary care agreement involving LMC, CCG and secondary care provider; and detailed guidance to facilitate conversations between CCGs and providers.

CCG funding allocations briefing
The House of Commons Library has published NHS Funding: Clinical Commissioning Groups.  This briefing and Excel file gives details of funding allocations for each CCG from 2013/14 to 2020/21. The briefing paper also gives details of the process used to allocate the funds. 

Safety critical patient communications
NHS Improvement has published Spoken communication and patient safety in the NHS.  This research examines the issues surrounding spoken communication of safety critical information. It identifies six key areas that present challenges.

NIHR Signals

• Better pain relief for women in labour
• Financial incentives may help workers quit smoking
• Negative pressure dressings are no better than standard dressings for open fractures
• No benefit from monitoring antiepileptic drug levels in pregnancy
• Non-urgent attendances to emergency departments are more common among younger adults
• Patient-centred care for multi-morbidity improves patient experience, but quality of life is unchanged
• Keyhole surgery is more effective than physiotherapy for hip impingement
• Two antiplatelet drugs may prevent further strokes but increase major bleeds
• Routine measurement of grip strength can help assess frailty in hospital
• The proportion of patients not transported to emergency departments after an ambulance is called varies across the country
• Virtual reality therapy reduces fear of heights

Statistics

• NICE Technology Appraisals in the NHS in England (Innovation Scorecard) – to March 2018
• Ambulance Quality Indicators: clinical outcomes – May 2018
• Ambulance Quality Indicators: systems indicators – September 2018
• Wheelchair services: Operational Data Collection – Quarter 1 dataset (April – June 2018)
• Compendium – Deaths at home
• Compendium – Years of life lost
• Compendium – Mortality from diabetes
• Compendium – Mortality from coronary heart disease
• Compendium – Mortality from stroke
• Compendium – Mortality from suicide or suicide and injury undetermined
• Compendium – Mortality from respiratory disease
• Sexually transmitted infections in Yorkshire and Humber – 2017 data
• Monthly hospital activity data – August 2018
• Provisional Monthly Hospital Episode Statistics for Admitted Patient Care, Outpatient and Accident and Emergency data – April 2018 – August 2018
• A&E attendances and emergency admissions – September 2018 and Q2 report
• Provisional Accident and Emergency Quality Indicators for England – August 2018, by provider
• Hospital Outpatient Activity – 2017-18
• Diagnostics waiting times and activity – August 2018
• Mixed sex accommodation breaches – August 2018
• Delayed transfers of care – August 2018
• Critical care bed capacity and urgent operations cancelled – August 2018
• Referral to treatment waiting times statistics for consultant-led elective care – August 2018